UNDER THE RADAR with Host Frank Fear

Performance politics gets plenty of media attention, and it is a form of entertainment, too. But it replaces serious political discourse with a politically-infused game. What matters—always matters—is substance. FDR knew that.   

We're going through an extraordinary, collective experience--a national emergency caused by COVID-19. Thousands have fallen ill and died, and America has shut down. What is this shared experience telling us about America? Listen as three of my colleagues--Michael, Monica, and Steve--talk about this important question. 

Medical authorities tell us that people with pre-existing health conditions are more likely than healthier persons to succumb to COVID-19.  But just as those conditions challenge physical viability, sociological and cultural pre-conditions affect a society's socio-cultural health. Frank identifies/describes five pre-conditions that affect America negatively.

I’ve worked over the years with many outstanding community development practitioners. Sister Maureen Lally is the 'best of the best.' She is what Professor Albert W. Dzur calls 'a democratic professional.' See what I mean as you listen to her talk about people and her work in County Mayo, Ireland. 

Civic activist Susan McGuire works for the public good. An excellent organizer, she has created and led numerous initiatives, and never shies away from doing the heavy lifting.  Susan talks about her civic experiences, shares her thoughts about America today, and expresses her hope for America's future.  

The NCAA's budget is connected inextricably to revenues it receives from March Madness. The Association then passes on a significant chunk of those revenues to Division 1 conferences and schools. Because March Madness was canceled this year, the NCAA will allocate fewer resources this spring, and the fiscal situation will get worse if college football is affected in the fall. While there are many...

Everybody knows how expensive it is to go to college these days. College debt is growing, too. It's no surprise, then, that national surveys show that a significant percentage of American adults endorse policies that reduce public tuition costs and relieve college debt. But the majority of public college/university public presidents and trustees aren't similarly inclined.   

The internet has opened up opportunities for citizens to write and share their thoughts with the broader public--beyond writing comments about pieces that others have written. Roger Barbee, my guest today, is what I call a 'citizen journalist.'  I'll share a few thoughts about citizen journalism and how it has evolved, and then we'll hear from Roger about why he writes, what he writes, and so...

As Joe Biden was beating Bernie Sanders on Super Tuesday I-III, Biden struggled with one swath of primary voters—Very Liberal, Progressive, and Independent voters, Those votes stuck largely with Sanders. To send a strong message to millions of voters who lean Left and who aren’t leaning his way currently--voters he needs to win in November-Joe Biden needs to name a Progressive VP.

Buddy Campbell retired recently as president and CEO of a large, regional, nonprofit organization, YMCA Buffalo/Niagara. The Buffalo News credited him with leading ‘a remarkable organizational resurgence’ at that Western New York-based organization. Here's why. 

In his activist and professional roles, Terry Link values and enables broadly shared leadership. Today, Terry talks about the importance of 'spark' and its connection to enabling leaderful-environments. 

Let’s shift the word ‘leadership’ to the word ‘leader-ful.’ If we do that, then we can talk about places, spaces, and circumstances where leadership is shared widely and a group moves forward collaboratively. It's not about he/she, it’s about ‘we.’

Bill is back to give more examples of local residents who worked together to make democracy work as it should. He'll also share guidelines to you can use in your community.  (Contact Dr. Rizzo at wsrizzo@wisc.edu.)

There's so much talk these days about democracy in jeopardy and America's political divide. But there are also many examples of democracy working as it should. Guest Bill Rizzo will talk about that today, drawing on decades of experience working with citizens and government officials across the State of Wisconsin. Tune in! (Contact Dr. Rizzo at wsrizzo@wisc.edu.)

Frank bases that assertion on Exit Interviews conducted March 3 and 10 in 16 primary states. Listen to what he found and what it means. 

Today’s Under the Radar topic is ‘the professions’—with a twist. It’s about professionals with whom we come in contact regularly, but professionals we really don’t know much about. I can’t think of a job that has been more in the spotlight since 9/11 than U.S. Customs. My guest, Pat Burns, demystifies what's involved in being a Customs Officer, including talking about the many challenges associate...

Did you know that millions of America's voters can't cast ballots in primaries this year? Frank talks about why and what one state is doing to change the way it conducts statewide primaries. 

Hi, everyone, and thanks for listening to this opening episode of UNDER THE RADAR. I’m your host, Frank Fear. UNDER THE RADAR isn’t about business as usual. It’s about issues that don’t get discussed enough, if at all; and it’s about people from whom we don’t hear enough, if at all. WeLcome to UNDER THE RADAR.